The Structure of the Irreversibly Bound Adhesion Promoter-Substrate Interfacial Layer of γ-Aminopropylsilanetriol on Crystalline Si, as Measured by XPS and FTIR

The irreversibly bound interfacial layer deposited by the γ-aminopropysilanetriol adhesion promoter onto a crystalline silicon substrate, which remains even after profuse washing, was found by XPS to have resulted from the fragmentation and rearrangement of the original γ-aminopropylsilanetriol molecule. A mechanism is proposed, involving the homolytic scission of the terminal N-C bond. One of the subsequent reactions is believed to involve hydrogen loss by abstraction and the formation of a terminal vinyl group, which bonds to the substrate. Support for this mechanism is found in IR spectroscopy of this layer.     

Study of the sorption and acidic properties of MTW-type zeolite

The acidity of H-MTW-type zeolite has been investigated using infrared spectroscopy of adsorbed pyridine. Pore volume has been measured by nitrogen andn-hexane adsorption. The zeolite exhibits infrared signals at 3612 and 3580 cm^–1 tentatively attributed to bridging hydroxyl groups vibrating in the main channel and in the six-membered rings of the structure, respectively. Both hydroxyl groups possess high acid strength and are readily accessible to pyridine. H-MTW shows an-hexane cracking activity at 350°C comparable to that obtained with MFI and BEA-type materials with a product selectivity between medium and large pore structural types.     

YAG thermal barrier coatings deposited by suspension and solution precursor thermal spray

Yttrium aluminium garnet (YAG) is a promising topcoat material for thermal barrier coatings due to its high temperature stability and better CMAS (calcium-magnesium-alumino-silicate) resistance. YAG topcoats were deposited by suspension and solution precursor high-velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) thermal spray. The relationships between processing, microstructure and final properties were studied through a range of characterization techniques and thermal cycling tests. The microstructure of the as-sprayed YAG topcoat from stoichiometric solution precursor (SP-YAG) had distributed pores and inter-splat boundaries, while the as-sprayed topcoat produced from suspension (S-YAG) had vertical and branched micro cracks, pores, and inter-splat boundaries. Both as-sprayed coatings were composed of amorphous phase, hexagonal yttrium aluminium perovskite (YAP) and cubic YAG. In thermal cycling tests, 20% of SP-YAG failure was reached after the 10th cycle; whereas, S-YAG reached the failure criteria between the 60th and 70th cycle. The failure of both the SP-YAG and the S-YAG topcoats occurred due to thermal stresses during the thermal cycling.     

Anaplastic large cell lymphoma Hodgkin's-like: a randomized trial of ABVD versus MACOP-B with and without radiation therapy

During the last few years, morphological, immunohistochemical, and genetic findings have placed anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) as a distinct clinicopathologic entity, and several reports have focused on the existence of different subtypes of the tumor. Particular attention has been paid to the ALCL-Hodgkin's-like (HL) subtype, which seems to be on the border between Hodgkin's disease (HD) and high-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (HG-NHL). From September 1994 to July 1997, during the course of an Italian multicentric trial, 40 ALCL-HLs were randomized to receive as front-line chemotherapy MACOP-B (methotrexate with leucovorin, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, prednisone, and bleomycin-a third-generation HG-NHL regimen) or ABVD (doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine-a scheme specific for HD). All patients with bulky disease in the mediastinum at diagnosis underwent local radiotherapy after the chemotherapeutic program. Complete response (CR) was achieved in 17 of the 19 (90%) patients who were treated with MACOP-B, and in 19 of the 21 (91%) patients who were administered ABVD. The probability of relapse-free survival, projected at 32 months, was 94% for the MACOP-B subset and 91% for the ABVD subset. The majority of patients with mediastinal bulky disease obtained CR (evaluated with 67Ga single photon emission computed tomography [SPECT]) after their radiotherapy. The present study suggests that ALCL-HL, in line with its borderline status, responds in an equivalent way to third-generation chemotherapy for HG-NHL and to conventional HD treatment in terms of both CR and relapse-free survival rates. However, as to the latter, a longer follow-up period may be needed before stating the absolute equivalence of the two regimens used.     

Merging Results for Distributed Content Based Image Retrieval

Searching information through the Internet often requires users to separately contact several digital libraries, use each library interface to author the query, analyze retrieval results and merge them with results returned by other libraries. Such a solution could be simplified by using a centralized server that acts as a gateway between the user and several distributed repositories: The centralized server receives the user query, forwards the user query to federated repositories—possibly translating the query in the specific format required by each repository—and fuses retrieved documents for presentation to the user. To accomplish these tasks efficiently, the centralized server should perform some major operations such as: resource selection, query transformation and data fusion. In this paper we report on some aspects of MIND, a system for managing distributed, heterogeneous multimedia libraries (MIND, 2001, http://www.mind-project.org). In particular, this paper focusses on the issue of fusing results returned by different image repositories. The proposed approach is based on normalization of matching scores assigned to retrieved images by individual libraries. Experimental results on a prototype system show the potential of the proposed approach with respect to traditional solutions.     

Evaluation of performance of various color‐difference formulae using an experimental black dataset

The objective of this study was to develop a specific visual dataset comprising black‐appearing samples with low lightness (L* ranging from approximately 10.4 to 19.5), varying in hue and chroma, evaluating their visual differences against a reference sample, and testing the performance of major color difference formulas currently in use as well as OSA‐UCS‐based models and more recent CAM02 color difference formulas including CAM02‐SCD and CAM02‐UCS models. The dataset comprised 50 dyed black fabric samples of similar structure, and a standard (L*= 15.33, a* = 0.14, b* = ?0.82), with a distribution of small color differences, in ΔE^*_ab, from 0 to approximately 5. The visual color difference between each sample and the standard was assessed by 19 observers in three separate sittings with an interval of at least 24 hours between trials using an AATCC standard gray scale for color change, and a total of 2850 assessments were obtained. A third‐degree polynomial equation was used to convert gray scale ratings to visual differences. The Standard Residual Sum of Squares index (STRESS) and Pearson's correlation coefficient (r), were used to evaluate the performance of various color difference formulae based on visual results. According to the analysis of STRESS index and correlation coefficient results CAM02 color difference equations exhibited the best agreement against visual data with statistically significant improvement over other models tested. The CIEDE2000 (1:1:1) equation also showed good performance in this region of the color space. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 39, 589–598, 2014